12 Precautions Your Startup Should Probably Take

If you’re thinking of starting a business, or you’ve just started one, one of your main concerns should be what you can do to keep your business safe and free from things like lawsuits and hackers. If you don’t take the steps needed to keep your business safe now, then you might end up regretting it later on down the line – it doesn’t matter what size your business is or how new it is, hackers will target you. Not only that, it’s all too easy to make a mistake when you’re new to the game and end up in legal trouble.

With that in mind, we’ll go through 12 precautions that your startup should probably take:

Make Sure Everybody Is On Board With Your Safety Rules

Every single person you have in your business should be on board with your safety rules. These rules should be clear, concise, and visible at all times. Make sure you summarize them and post them in several places so that there’s no confusion.

Appoint a go-to person so everybody knows who to approach if they have questions about security – it could be you, it might be somebody else. Just make sure they are up to the job.

Avoid Taking Shortcuts

Whatever your business is about, avoid taking shortcuts. A rushed, ‘get it done fast’ attitude is one of the leading causes of mistakes and issues. Many of the issues made in business are due to human error, so rushing is obviously a bad idea. Always encourage employees to follow proper procedure and make sure you set an example to them by doing it yourself. If you show them it’s not all that important by flouting the rules yourself, they will become resentful and probably end up copying you.

Onboard With Safety Training

When hiring people, safety training specific to your business should be part of your onboarding process. Having a strong, effective onboarding process is a must in this day and age.

Employees should be able to familiarize themselves with your safety procedures so that they are able to develop a set of solid strategies to respond effectively in the event of a real emergency. If you fail during the onboarding process, you can bet that your team will not be prepared for emergencies or disasters.

Say No To Malware

Malware is still a very real threat to businesses. You don’t want to let viruses and hackers take over your business, and no matter how small you are this is a possibility if you aren’t careful.

There are numerous things you can do, including:

Apply a firewall

Download security software

Clean up your emails

You should also make sure everybody is aware of what to avoid and what to look for in their own systems and emails. Sometimes, it may be the fault of an employee who has not been trained properly in things like this.

Protect Your Identity

Occasionally, it may be important to protect your identity. You can look at sites like hot spot shield if you’re wondering What is My IP – it is right there for you to see. This means anybody can see it if you don’t protect it. People may be able to steal your address and other information if you aren’t careful, and it’s especially dangerous if you have people who work remotely on public wi-fi or in other locations. Getting a VPN can help to protect some of your information so your employees can work in peace.

Appoint Somebody Trustworthy And Experienced To Handle Social Media

Social media is a must. It’s free, and it’s an extremely powerful way to spread the word of your business, build relationships with your audience, learn more about what people want, and so much more. Your online voice is extremely important, as it can help you to attract your audience and build relationships with them, but it must be consistent and suit your brand. As well as coming up with a suitable online voice, you must ensure no confidential information is shared, and a professional air should always be maintained when responding to your audience and posting in general. It’s also important that you be aware of current news and social events to avoid saying anything offensive or insensitive.

Social media can be amazing and magical when used correctly, but it can also be a minefield. Make sure you have a set of guidelines for using social media, too. Also, it can be a good idea to use software that you can use to automate postings to make things easier. Just don’t rely on it, or you’ll take the human element out of it.

Have A Hacker Use Their Powers For Good

If you’re seriously worried about being hacked into, you could hire a hacker to use their powers for good. They may be able to hack into your business for you and give you advice on your weak spots and what to do about them.

Make Sure You Have All of The Correct Licenses And Documentation

Ensure that whatever kind of business you’re running, you have looked into what is required in your city/state and you have all of the correct licenses and documentation. If you don’t have these things, it’s only a matter of time before you are forced to shut down.

Get The Right Insurance Cover

Insurance is crucial, and depending on what you do, you will need different levels of cover. For example, working with employees requires insurance that protects them, while working with both employees and the public will require an even more comprehensive level of cover. It’s important you don’t select your insurance based on what’s the cheapest, or if you do experience an issue you might find that it’s void and doesn’t cover what you need.

Read up on providers and policies very carefully so you can choose the most suitable level for what you do.

Update Your Systems And Software Regularly

It isn’t enough to simply download the systems and software that you need. Make sure you update them regularly to stop leaving a space for hackers and viruses to get into.

Always Check The Record Of People You Work With

Before hiring somebody, always do a background check and look into their record to ensure they are trustworthy and that they are exactly who they say they are. You should do your due diligence with vendors, too. Not only is this crucial for your business, it’s also a must for your reputation. You don’t want to work with a vendor that has been closely associated with some dodgy stuff.

Take Measures On Your Physical Premises

Finally, make sure you take precautions on your physical premises, too. You can look into high quality gates and fencing, CCTV, alarm systems, and more. These things will deter criminals and enable you to at least identify a perpetrator if something does happen. You may also want to look into protecting your space from natural disaster if you live in an area where this is a possibility.